This isn't a story about lost donkeys. It's a lesson in lost priorities.
Samuel was making preparations to anoint Saul to become king. As with most good intentions, distractions caused a delay in the execution of the plan.
The donkeys of Kish had escaped and were lost. Considering the times, I suppose the loss is roughly equivalent to losing a car or two from the driveway. I think that would qualify as a distraction.
"I know we planned to meet today to consider our growth plans for the second quarter, but both of our cars were stolen from our driveway. There's no way I can meet today."
There is a common collision between our plans for the day and the spiritual appointments set for us. We often confuse the important with the urgent. The people who surround a leader will rarely understand a decision to move in a spiritual assignment versus responding to the myriad of highly urgent demands of the workplace.
Samuel told Saul to stop worrying about the donkeys that were lost three days ago (see 1 Samuel 9:20).
Saul was preoccupied with a wild donkey chase. And I thought wild-goose chasing was bad!
As leaders, we must take up a sword against the agendas of others. We must find the most important spiritual task of the day and dedicate full energy to affect completion.
It's not hard to discern the spiritual agenda of the day. It is assigned through prayer and daily Bible reading. A spiritual assignment rarely comes by email, texting or voice mail. It comes directly into our heart and likely consumes us.
The more I focus on completing spiritual assignments, the more God is faithful to redeem the time and somehow make the path easier to complete marketplace assignments.
Spending the day chasing donkeys is the path of least resistance. But moving in spiritual priority requires resisting the temptation to respond to the urgent.
Godly time management is spiritual warfare.
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Today's Scripture
"Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven" (Matt. 6:10).
Platform Tip No. 97
We cannot force someone to seek help.
We must present the solution to a problem over and over again until there is a desire to want help. Our audience must want things to change.
It's one thing to be in pain. Pain becomes relevant when we want it to go away.
Produce many of your messages to build desire for change.
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Dr. Steve Greene is the publisher and executive vice president of the media group at Charisma Media and executive producer of the Charisma Podcast Network. His book, Love Leads: The Spiritual Connection Between Your Relationships and Productivity, is now available.
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